SJS News

Make A Difference. The opportunity to support Saint James School, our students, and our faculty is what inspired so many in our community to donate a record-setting $50.4 million through a 10-year comprehensive capital campaign.

The Make A Difference Campaign has already and will continue to transform the campus and enhance the student experience in every way. The campaign focused on three main components essential to ensuring the School’s ability to perform its mission for years to come: the Annual Fund ($14.3 million), the Endowment ($12.3 million), and Capital Projects ($23.7 million), which include the Pohanka Fine Arts Center, Turner Athletic Center, Rocca and Young Townhomes, renovations in the Cotton Building, and Dunnan Hall boys’ dormitory.

We are grateful that gifts from nearly 3,000 alumni, past parents, current parents, grandparents, faculty/staff, and friends helped us surpass our $50 million goal. We are also excited to announce that in addition to more than $50 million in gifts and pledges, we have received $23 million in new bequests, which also will be added to the endowment in the future as those gifts are realized.

The SJS Board of Directors officially closed this milestone campaign at its January 2024 meeting.

“The response to this campaign has been amazing, and we could not be more grateful,” said Father Dunnan. “Because of the generous support for our operating budget through the Annual Fund, we have been able to greatly improve our programs and to expand access to our School. Because of the capital support, we have greatly improved and enhanced our campus, and gifts to the endowment mean that we can support our students and faculty more generously and confidently for generations to come.”

When it launched in 2014 with an initial goal of $35 million, the Make A Difference Campaign was the largest and most ambitious fundraising effort in the School’s 180-year history. The campaign went public in the spring of 2019, having already raised $22 million.

No one could have anticipated the challenges that lay ahead with the Covid-19 pandemic impacting lives across the globe. Despite this, the Saint James community continued its steadfast support, particularly for the Annual Fund, which was and still is vital to meeting our yearly operating budget. The School also used this time to reevaluate the student experience and add projects to the campaign, including the Stockton Smith Fieldhouse, a 65-yard indoor turf field that will be the first of its kind in the area.

“The pandemic was a challenge as we had to pause our building projects, but this did give us an opportunity to discover new ways to enhance the athletic, extracurricular, and residential experiences on campus,” said Father Dunnan.

Due to the overwhelming response of our community, the initial goal of $35 million was met in December of 2021. With work still to be done, the Board of Trustees extended the campaign to December 2023, and the goal was increased to $50 million.

“The generosity of the Saint James community throughout the 10 years of this campaign was truly remarkable, and we are proud to see the impact it has had on campus,” said Ann and John Davis, Co-Chairs of the Make A Difference Campaign. “This campaign has always been about making a difference for our students so that they can be leaders for good in the world.”

On campus, the impact of the Make A Difference Campaign is evident.

• The dedicated space in the state-of-the-art Pohanka Fine Arts Center has allowed our visual art and music programs to grow and flourish.
• Renovations in the Cotton Building include a new dance studio and improvements in the theater, including newly installed stage curtains, a catwalk, a lighting system, and A/V equipment. Plans for the Young Fab Lab are being finalized to transform the existing boys’ locker room into a hub of technology and innovation in the center of our campus.
• The Turner Athletic Center and Stockton Smith Fieldhouse are expected to be completed by the start of next school year, giving our students the upgraded facilities needed for practice, recreation, and competition.
• The Young and Rocca Townhomes provide faculty housing that allows the School to recruit and retain talented faculty.
• Construction is expected to begin this spring on Dunnan Hall, a new boys’ dormitory that will improve the boarding experience for our students and provide additional faculty housing.

While not as outwardly evident, annual giving is vital to fulfilling our mission and provides yearly funds that account for more than 10 percent of the School’s operating budget. The Annual Fund will therefore continue to be an important philanthropic need each year.

Another major emphasis of the campaign was increasing the School’s endowment, which will provide Saint James with long-term, secure funding for many of its ongoing needs, including student financial aid and faculty salaries and benefits. Growing the endowment will be our focus going forward.

As we proceed with several remaining construction projects, we will continue to solicit additional support for these as well.

“We again just could not be more grateful to everyone who has so generously supported us,” said Father Dunnan.

The Make A Difference Campaign has truly done just that—made a difference in the lives of each and every one of our students and faculty members now and for years to come. 

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who helped us to achieve our historic and ambitious goal.

Visit the Make A Difference Campaign website